Improvement in machinery for discharging gas-retorts



2 SheetsSheet 1.

A. Q. ROSS.

Machinery for Discharging Gas-Retorts.

No.- 222,563. Patented Dec. 9,1879.

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N. FEI'ERSl PHQTO'LUHDGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D C.

2 g Sheets-Sheet 2. A. Q. ROSS- Machinery for'Discharging Gas-Retorts.

No. 222,563. Patented Dec. 9,1879.

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N-PEIERS. PHOTO-LITHDGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D C.

- UNITED'TATES Pannier OFFIoE.

ABBorr-o. Ross, OF oINoINNArI, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINERY FOR DISCHARGING GAS RETORTS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 222,563, dated December 9, 1879 application filed September 8, 1879.

To all whom it may concern:

- Be it known that I, ABBOTT Q. Ross, of

is a specification.

This invention relates to certain improvements upon a machine for discharging coke from gas-retorts, for which I filed an application for Letters Patent on the 1st day of July,

1879, which application has been allowed, but

the patent has not yetissued.

Said improvements consist, first, in making the counter-balance toaid in supporting the rakes, when projected, automatically adjustable, as hereinafter described; second, in providing means for unshipping the mechanism which moves said counter-balance, and fixing the latter immovablyon its lever when one rake only is in use, as hereinafter described and, third, in providingone or more shields to guide the descent of the coke as it is withdrawn from the upper and middle retorts, or either of them, and prevent-it from falling upon the rake arm or arms below, or being scattered upon the floor, as hereinafter more fully described. I

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of themachine, as seen from the side to which the rake-arms are attached.

I Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the opposite side of the machine. the cross-head upon the piston-rod, showing I alsothe pinion with which the rack upon said cross-head engages to actuate the rakes; and

Fig. 3 is a detail view of as to bring the rakes in coincidence with any bench of retorts, as desired.

A and A are two vertical standards attached to the main frame and forming parts thereof, and a, a are two bars rigidly connecting saidstandards, and serving as rails on and between which a reciprocating traveler or carriage, B, runs to operate the'rakes, as

hereinafter more fully described.

O G O are the rake-bars pivoted to avertical bar, E, which is rigidly attached to said reciprocating traveler. Said rake-bars, when in use, are pivoted to the bar E at c c 0,- but when it is desired to use only one or two of the rakes at the same time, the bars of such grooved rollers (1 running under bar a.

F is an adjusting-bar, supporting the front ends of the rakebars, which is secured in suitable guides to the standard A in such mannor that it may be moved vertically up and down to elevate and depress the rakes e e e. The rake-bars are supported upon and .move in the grooves of grooved rollers ff f, and are secured in place by idle rollers f f f upon said adj usting-bar F. Said adj usting-bar is moved up and down by means of a T-lever, G, at the rear end of the machine,'connected by rods g g with another T-lever, G, at the front end of the machine, which last-mew tioned lever is connected with said adjustingbar by a link, g. By raisingthe handle of the lever G the rakes are elevated, and by pressing it down they are depressed.

H is the cylinder of a reciprocating steamengine which drives the machine, and H is a hydraulic governor or regulator; the construction and functions of which are fully described in my said pending application, and need not be particularly described here, as it forms no part of my present invention.

The piston-rod I of the steam-cylinder H also works a piston in the governor H, and between said cylinder and governor is a cross head, J, secured to the piston-rod by a setscrew, and it slides to and iro upon and between two guide-plates, J J. On the lower side of said cross-head is a toothed rack, j, which engages with a'toothed pinion, 1', upon a shaft, 2', on the opposite end of which is a drum, K. Around said drum is wound awire rope or chain, In, one end of which is carried around a grooved roller, '5 up and around an other grooved roller, 1, thence to the reciprocating traveler, to the central part of which it is attached, and the other end is carried around a grooved roller, 1', thence up and around a grooved roller, i, thence to the reciprocating traveler, to which it is attached opgosite the point of attachment of the other en As the piston-rod moves to and fro the rack upon the cross-head J revolves the pinion i, which turns the drum I, causing the wire rope or chain to move the traveler to or from the retorts, according to the direction in which the piston-rod moves.

Thus far 1 have described only so much of my machine as is described and claimed in my said former application. 1 will now proneed to describe my improvements thereon.

L is a lever, having its fulcrum at l on a bracket, 1, secured to the standard A. The short end of this lever is connected by a link, 1*, to the upper end of the adjusting-bar F. On the other end of said lever L is mounted a movable weight or counter-balance, M, having in its upper portion two grooved rollers, m m, which ride upon the lever L, which lever passes through a slot in said weight.

To the forward part of said weight M is attached one end of a rope or chain, 12, which passes forward and around a grooved roller, n, thence back through a hole in the lower part of the weight to the rear end of the lever L, where it passes around another grooved roller, n thence back to the weight M, to the rear end of which it is attached. The grooved roller n is mounted on the same shaft with a sprocketwheel, 0, said shaft having its bearings in the bracket l.

From the cross-head J an arm, I, projects toward the rake-bars, to the outer end of which arm asmall cross-head, p, is secured by a setscrew, and'to this small cross-head one end of a chain, Q, is attached, which chain passes around a sprocket-wheel, o, mounted on the rigid frame of the machine; thence passes up and around sprocket-wheel 0,- thence down and around another sprocket-wheel, 0 thence back and around a sprocket-wheel, 0 at the rear end of the machine, and thence to the cross-head p on the arm 1, to which it is attached.

It will be seen that as the piston-rod moves toward the retorts, and thus projects the rakes farther from their bearings upon the adjust lug-bar I it so moves the chain Q, as to rotate the sprocket-wheel o and the grooved roller n, and thus so moves the chain a. as to cause it to draw the weight M away from the fulcrum of lever L and give it an increased leverage to support the advanced rakes; and when the piston-rod moves back it, in like manner, draws the weight toward the fulcrum of the lever, and thus diminishes the leverage, as less leverage is required to counterbalance the rakes.

When but one rake is in use,vthe weight, having been properly adjusted, may be permanently fixed upon the lever L by means of the set-screw t, and the chain Q may be unshipped from the cross-head J. by loosening the set-screw which secures the small crosshead 19 upon the arm I and removing the said crosshead p therefrom. The movement of the piston-rod will not then move the weight.

S S are two shields hinged to the adjusting-bar F, and falling down at an incline upon the middle and lower rakearms, thus forming scrapers to keep the upper surfaces of the said rake-arms clean, and eifectnally preventin g the coke from falling upon said rake-arms, and from being carried out onto the door, and from getting between the grooved and idle rollers f andf.

What; i claim as my invention is- 1. In combination with a reciprocating rake or series of rakes, an antomaticallyadj ustable counter-balance, in combination with and actuated by the piston-rod and connecting mechanism, substantially ashereindescribcd. i l

2. In combination with the chain Q, for operating the counter-balance, the small crosshead 19, detachable from the arm P, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. In combination with the reciprocating rakes, the inclined shields S S, or either of them, hinged to the adjusting-bar F, substantially as and for the purpose described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of the subseribin g witnesses.

ABBOTT Q. ROSS.

Witnesses OHAs. F. RUNGK, W. T. IRWIN. 

